Digitalization of Romania’s National Documentary Heritage: Impacts on Education and Public Administration in the Context of Digital Equity and Social Inclusion

Abstract

In the context of promoting digital equity and preventing exclusion, Romanian public institutions follow the European strategic direction regarding digitalization and the free and equitable online access to the digitized heritage of public administration, while complying with legislation on the protection of personal data and classified information. The article analyzes how the digitalization of public-interest documents supports education by providing information of practical value or scientific documentation, while also modernizing Romanian public administration through efficiency, institutional transparency, and digital equity. Specialist studies identify the benefits of digitalization; however, the risks of digital exclusion, generated by functionalities that are inadequately adapted to users' needs, are not systematically addressed. The research method consists of a critical analysis of the implementation of national and European legislation in the field of digital access to the Romanian documentary heritage, complemented by an examination of relevant initiatives concerning digitalization in support of Romanian education. The results of the study consist in providing strategies to prevent the exclusion of vulnerable or marginalized social groups who do not have equal access to digital services in education. The study's originality lies in correlating heritage digitalization with digital equity, thereby driving modernization and inclusion.